Sufficiency in the Gospel

"The gospel serves as the means by which God daily constructs me into what He wants me to be and also serves as the channel through which He gives me my inheritance every day of my Christian life. Hence it could be said that the gospel contains all I need "for life and godliness." It is for this reason that God tells me to be steadfastly entrenched in the gospel at all times and never to allow myself to be moved from there. The mere fact that God tells me to stay inside the gospel at all times must mean that He intends to supply all of my needs as long as I am abiding in that place of luxury." Milton Vincent - A Gospel Primer for Christians

How easy it is for me to become so focused on spiritual growth or the destruction of sin or the daily business of being alive that I forget that all of it must be done in and through the gospel? Very easily! This is so sad for many reasons:

1. Apart from the gospel, spiritual growth is useless
2. Apart from the gospel, spiritual growth is HARD
3. Apart from the gospel, spiritual growth is slow and our failures are discouraging
4. Apart from the gospel, sin wins
5. Apart from the gospel, sin is stronger than we are
6. Apart from the gospel, daily life has no purpose
7. Apart from the gospel, daily life has no goal
8. Apart from the gospel, daily life has no joy
9. Apart from the gospel, daily life is hard, boring, monotonous

The gospel is God's ultimate expression of love. And only in the gospel can we find a purpose in life and a lasting joy. The moment we take our eyes off the gospel, disaster strikes, sin creeps in, depression takes hold, and God is no longer glorified in us. Sisters, let us continually fix our eyes on the Lord, on the work of Christ on the cross and on the position we now hold with God because of it!

Like a Little Boy on Christmas Eve

"A man lying on his deathbed was asked by his son, 'Dad, how do you feel?'

The man replied, 'Son, I feel like a little boy on Christmas Eve."

Wow! I found this little story on a blog a couple month's back and made a note of it. What a powerful statement by a man who knew who his Savior was and who truly viewed eternity with Him as the ultimate event to look forward to.

We all know how little kids are on Christmas Eve. There are presents under the Christmas tree and they've been there for a while. The kids are obsessed, staring at them, picking them up and shaking them, guessing at what is inside. By the time Christmas Eve comes around they are bouncing off the walls with excitement. One more day, one more day!! They wake up ridiculously early Christmas morning, filled with joy that the long awaited day has finally come!

Oh that we would have the faith of little children, that we would have our minds consumed with the prize to come in such a way that when this life finally draws to an end we literally cannot wait to go home! Our God is so big and so beautiful and so wonderful that our sinful minds cannot even come close to comprehending his greatness and majesty, and because of this we are so easily distracted by the trinkets that this world has to offer.

My prayer for myself and for you all is that God would become so great in our minds that the temptations of this world no longer have any power over us. That our understanding of the love God has for us and the immense sacrifice that was made for us would forever grow. And that because of this, our love for others would increase and be manifested by greater patience and kindness shown to all, closer unity with the church, and an urgency in sharing our faith with unbelievers.

How Can I Keep from Singing - Chris Tomlin

There is an endless song
Echoes in my soul
I hear the music ring

And though the storms may come
I am holding on
To the rock I cling

How can I keep from singing Your praise
How can I ever say enough
How amazing is Your love
How can I keep from shouting Your name
I know I am loved by the King
And it makes my heart want to sing

I will lift my eyes
In the darkest night
For I know my Savior lives

And I will walk with You
Knowing You'll see me through
And sing the songs You give

How can I keep from singing Your praise
How can I ever say enough
How amazing is Your love
How can I keep from shouting Your name
I know I am loved by the King
And it makes my heart want to sing

I can sing in the troubled times
Sing when I win
I can sing when I lose my step
And fall down again
I can sing 'cause You pick me up
Sing 'cause You're there
I can sing 'cause You hear me, Lord
When I call to You in prayer
I can sing with my last breath
Sing for I know
That I'll sing with the angels
And the saints around the throne

Looking Forward to Heaven Part 2

Yesterday we talked about the anticipation that we should have for heaven - for spending an eternity with God. Today we will go a little deeper into our discussion.

Philippians 1 gives us an excellent example of the fine line we walk here. Verses 21-24 read, "For me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. But if I am to live on in the flesh, this will mean fruitful labor for me; and I do not know which to choose. But I am hard-pressed from both directions, having the desire to depart and be with Christ, for that is very much better; yet to remain on in the flesh is more necessary for your sake." If you notice, every time Paul mentions his own personal preferences, what would be better for him, he speaks of going home to Christ. Notice the phrase "very much better." Not just kind of better, or theoretically better, but "very much better." He equates death with gain, not with loss.

And what does he mention as his purpose in continuing to live? Is it that he wants to have children first? Is it that he wants to retire first? No! Rather, the only purpose he can come up with is fruitful labor, for ministering to others and spreading the gospel. Consider the final phrase "to remain on is more necessary for your sake." What? This statement is huge!

Paul's life is so devoted to servitude that he equates his very reason for living as serving others. There is no reason for himself to stay alive and he has no problem in saying that he would much rather just go and be with Christ, but he recognizes that the work the Lord has him doing is important for others. This statement by Paul should cause us to think on two different levels.

First, how many of us think this way? If we are honest, probably very few of us. Paul obviously has a very big view of who God is. We should be continually praying that God would reveal more of Himself to us (and more of ourselves to us!) until we, like Paul, can cry out that going to be with Christ this exact second is so much better than anything we would be 'missing' here on Earth!

Second, how many of us could honestly say that our single greatest reason for living is to serve others? How many of us can pray, "Father, I want to come home! But perhaps allow me to linger on to continue to do this work in your name!" What impact would your death have on the world? God has not called us all to be Paul, but He has called us all to live our lives in complete abandon for Him and His Word.

The Lord blesses us in many ways while we are on this Earth. Every child is a gift from God. Beautiful weather is a gift from God. Delicious food is a gift from God. Good sleep is a gift from God. But all of these gifts are completely blown away by the ultimate gift of salvation in Jesus Christ and eternity with God.

Just like the children in our example, we should be preparing. We are only on this Earth for a short time and we need to be making the most of it - especially if we are praying that Christ would come back soon! Just as they took joy in picking their favorite outfits to wear for their friends, so should we be clothing ourselves with holiness and the fruits of the spirit.

Now, this is all very interesting to talk about and read about. But how many of us are really sitting on the edge of our seats every minute of every day wondering, "Will this be the day I get to go home??" As I mentioned earlier, this is due to our lack of knowledge of God. If we truly knew God for who He was, this world would sicken us. If we truly understood our salvation this would not be a struggle. But we are sinners and our minds are still clouded by sin. Let us join together today in prayer that God would make Himself known to us more every day. That He would so grow in majesty in our minds that we are willing and eager to count it all as loss for the sake of Christ and His gospel!

Looking Forward to Heaven Part 1

Oh no. You did it again. You volunteered to watch some kids from the church for the weekend and you told your own children about it. And now they won't stop talking about it! They are bouncing off the walls, running up and down the stairs and, worst of all, asking repeatedly if it is the weekend yet. "How much longer to Friday, mom?" "Hey mom, is it almost the weekend?" "Ma! How much longer 'till Sammy comes over?" Every five minutes the subject comes up until you wish you hadn't told them until after the visitors arrived!

They begin to rearrange their rooms, planning where each person will sleep. Favorite toys are brought out to display proudly. Outfits are planned and activities are organized. Everything they come in contact with suddenly relates, in some way, to the upcoming weekend.

You try to distract them with other things but each idea fails. You put in a movie but all they do is talk about how much fun it will be to watch movies with their friends on the weekend. You take them to the park but all they do is ask if they can go again on Saturday. You tell them one morning that they can have ice cream for dessert after dinner (because by this point you'd rather hear about ANYTHING but the upcoming weekend!) but all they do is ask if they can have ice cream with their friends on Friday.

No matter what you do or how hard you try to distract them, your kids' minds are focused on that weekend.

This is how we should feel about Heaven. We should be so excited over the prospect of spending eternity in Heaven with God that our excitement is barely containable. We should be so utterly focused on it that our joy and anticipation is readily apparent to anyone we see. Everything in our life should point to it.

Do you love singing hymns and praises? Anticipate the day when you will be singing praises continually! Do you love studying and learning more of the Lord? Imagine the day when you will see Him face to face! Do you loathe the sin that constantly encroaches upon your life? Bounce with excitement that one day this will no longer be an issue!

Just as the children set up their rooms and picked the toys and games they would want to use with their friends, so should we be preparing ourselves for Heaven. The time of our sanctification is now and we should take full advantage of it.

The excitements and events of this world should not cause us to lose our focus for one minute. Graduation, boyfriends/girlfriends, marriage, jobs, kids, cars, vacations, houses, grandkids, retirement - nothing should be held in higher anticipation than Heaven. You find out in a doctors visit a week before you were to be married that you have cancer and three days to live? It's been nice knowing you, honey, but I'm going home!

I know this sounds awful, and I almost didn't type it but I chose to anyway. If we had a right view of God and of Heaven and of our sinful state here on Earth then we would have no problem with that example, we would wholeheartedly agree! We should hold nothing in comparison to spending eternity with Christ in His glory! Our death should be a much anticipated event and our joy should rise exponentially with each year we live for we know that we are that much closer to Heaven.

Come back tomorrow to read more about this.

Why We Were Created

Genesis 1:26a, 27 "Then God said, "Let us make an in our image, in our likeness...So God created man in His own imagine, in the image of God He created him; male and female he created them."

As you read through Genesis one, you see the creation of the world, of day and night, light and darkness, land and water, birds and animals. Finally, on the sixth day you see something new. You see man created. This in of itself is not so radical; God has been creating for the past five days. But with man it is different. Man is created in the image of God.

What does this mean? It does not mean, as I remember thinking as a young child, that we look like God. Instead, it means that we have special 'abilities' that other living things, such as plants or animals, do not. These abilities include having thoughts and emotions and the ability to communicate and make decisions.

So why were we created differently than the animals. Why were we created in the image of God? For one reason: we are called to glorify God. This is not to say that plants and animals do not glorify God - they do. We, however, are created to glorify God in a unique way - by enjoying Him.

Think about this for a minute: we were created with the ability to know God, be entirely satisfied in our knowledge of Him, and spend eternity basking in the joy of our creator's presence. This is how we glorify God!

So today, when you are experiencing trials big or small and you find yourself getting frustrated or discontent, take a minute to pull back and remember your purpose. If you are having trouble finding this joy, stop and reflect on your salvation. Remind yourself of the gospel and thank God for choosing you to be a vessel of mercy rather than wrath.

Things in this world can seem so big, so important, so consuming. Do not let yourselves get caught up in the here and now. Concentrate on your Savior; remind yourself that your time here on earth is to be spent in preparing for an eternity of glorifying God through your enjoyment of Him. And then enjoy Him, for He truly is an awesome Savior, merciful God, and loving Father.

A joy-filled conversation…

A week ago I was taking my son to the orthodontist and on the way home I learned that my upcoming appointment with my dear friend (at Starbucks) was unexpectedly canceled. Not being one to let something like a canceled appointment stop me, I decided to take Aidan to Starbucks instead since we were both in the van driving by the very place! So we went through the drive-thru, got our Double Chocolate Chip Frapaccinos and parked to enjoy our drinks. While I sipped my first drink, I thanked God with a quick and heartfelt “Thank you Jesus for tasty treats!” This got me thinking. What a great time to delve into the understanding of my 13 year old. So I asked him, “Aidan, can unbelievers enjoy this drink as much as believers can?” To which he replied, “No.” I asked him to explain why that was so and he told me, “Because unbelievers don’t know that everything good we have is because of Christ. So they think that they deserve the treats because they’ve worked for them.” I thought that was a great answer especially for a 13 year old. I went on to add to that truth by saying that they missed the fact that all good things are gifts of God which has been purchased by Christ. I also talked to him about how Christians can enjoy the same things as unbelievers but more, because as Christians we don’t need the treat to fill our hearts with joy. We have Jesus to fill our hearts with joy so while we enjoy the treat our hearts are all the more drawn to worship the Gift-Giver more than the gift and as such our joy is made full… it is complete because it comes from Jesus and ends with Jesus. There are so many more reasons why I can enjoy that Starbucks more than the unbeliever. I am sure that people more godly than me could list pages full of reasons (people like John Piper could write a book on it and may have already!), and honestly we could talk even more about how we believers can do something even harder like have joy in a trial because of Jesus; but what I praise God for is that He has shown me and is showing my son that in Jesus lies all our hope for true and lasting joy, for all eternity to the praise of His glory! Now that’s something to think about and talk about.

Something Worth Thinking About

This is a part of a sermon from Jonathan Edwards that I came across in a John Piper devotional, Pierced by the Word. It has had me thinking, as anything written by Jonathan Edwards does. In fact I have had to read it over multiple times to let it sink in (but maybe that is just me) and I continue to mull it over. So I say with John Piper: "Read this slowly and let it waken you to the true goodness of forgiveness and life."


The redeemed have all their objective good in God. God Himself is the great good which they are brought to the possession and enjoyment of by redemption. He is the highest good, and the sum of all the good which Christ purchased. God is the inheritance of the saints; He is the portion of their souls. God is their wealth and treasure, their food, their life, their dwelling place, their ornament and diadem, and their everlasting honor and glory. They have none in heaven but God; He is the great good which the redeemed are received to at death, and which they are to rise at the end of the world. The Lord God, He is the light of the heavenly Jerusalem; and is the "river of the water of life" that runs, and the tree of life that grows, "in the midst of the Paradise of God." The glorious excellencies and beauty of God will be what will forever entertain the minds of the saints, and the love of God will be their everlasting feast. The redeemed will indeed enjoy other things; they will enjoy the angels, and will enjoy one another: but that which they shall enjoy in the angels, or each other, or in anything else whatsoever, that will yield them delight and happiness, will be what will be seen of God in them.

Giving with Joy

I was reading my bible the other day and I read this passage at the end of 1 Chronicles. I was just struck by how it is recorded over and over again that King David and the Israelites gave such an abudance to Lord willingly and with great joy. Then they praised God for allowing and giving them a heart to desire to give such an abundance back to the Lord for His temple. This is an encouraging example and reminder to me that I will find my greatest joy in giving what God has given freely to me, back to Him that His work may be done here on earth (such as through my giving of money as well as time and resources). It contradicts the lie which the world promotes, that we will only be happy if we hold tight to our money, time and resources so that we may spend them on our selves. May God be honored in our lives, hearts and yes... in our giving!


1 Chronicles 29:1ff
Then King David said to the entire assembly, "My son Solomon, whom alone God has chosen, is still young and inexperienced and the work is great; for the temple is not for man, but for the LORD God. 2 "Now with all my ability I have provided for the house of my God the gold for the things of gold, and the silver for the things of silver, and the bronze for the things of bronze, the iron for the things of iron, and wood for the things of wood, onyx stones and inlaid stones, stones of antimony and stones of various colors, and all kinds of precious stones and alabaster in abundance. 3 "Moreover, in my delight in the house of my God, the treasure I have of gold and silver, I give to the house of my God, over and above all that I have already provided for the holy temple, 4 namely, 3,000 talents of gold, of the gold of Ophir, and 7,000 talents of refined silver, to overlay the walls of the buildings; 5 of gold for the things of gold and of silver for the things of silver, that is, for all the work done by the craftsmen. Who then is willing to consecrate himself this day to the LORD?" 6 Then the rulers of the fathers' households, and the princes of the tribes of Israel, and the commanders of thousands and of hundreds, with the overseers over the king's work, offered willingly; 7 and for the service for the house of God they gave 5,000 talents and 10,000 darics of gold, and 10,000 talents of silver, and 18,000 talents of brass, and 100,000 talents of iron. 8 Whoever possessed precious stones gave them to the treasury of the house of the LORD, in care of Jehiel the Gershonite. 9 Then the people rejoiced because they had offered so willingly, for they made their offering to the LORD with a whole heart, and King David also rejoiced greatly. 10 So David blessed the LORD in the sight of all the assembly; and David said, "Blessed are You, O LORD God of Israel our father, forever and ever. 11 "Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, indeed everything that is in the heavens and the earth; Yours is the dominion, O LORD, and You exalt Yourself as head over all. 12 "Both riches and honor come from You, and You rule over all, and in Your hand is power and might; and it lies in Your hand to make great and to strengthen everyone. 13 "Now therefore, our God, we thank You, and praise Your glorious name. 14 "But who am I and who are my people that we should be able to offer as generously as this? For all things come from You, and from Your hand we have given You. 15 "For we are sojourners before You, and tenants, as all our fathers were; our days on the earth are like a shadow, and there is no hope. 16 "O LORD our God, all this abundance that we have provided to build You a house for Your holy name, it is from Your hand, and all is Yours. 17 "Since I know, O my God, that You try the heart and delight in uprightness, I, in the integrity of my heart, have willingly offered all these things; so now with joy I have seen Your people, who are present here, make their offerings willingly to You. 18 "O LORD, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, our fathers, preserve this forever in the intentions of the heart of Your people, and direct their heart to You; 19 and give to my son Solomon a perfect heart to keep Your commandments, Your testimonies and Your statutes, and to do them all, and to build the temple, for which I have made provision." 20 Then David said to all the assembly, "Now bless the LORD your God." And all the assembly blessed the LORD, the God of their fathers, and bowed low and did homage to the LORD and to the king. 21 On the next day they made sacrifices to the LORD and offered burnt offerings to the LORD, 1,000 bulls, 1,000 rams and 1,000 lambs, with their drink offerings and sacrifices in abundance for all Israel. 22 So they ate and drank that day before the LORD with great gladness. And they made Solomon the son of David king a second time, and they anointed him as ruler for the LORD and Zadok as priest. 23 Then Solomon sat on the throne of the LORD as king instead of David his father; and he prospered, and all Israel obeyed him. 24 All the officials, the mighty men, and also all the sons of King David pledged allegiance to King Solomon. 25 The LORD highly exalted Solomon in the sight of all Israel, and bestowed on him royal majesty which had not been on any king before him in Israel. 26 Now David the son of Jesse reigned over all Israel. 27 The period which he reigned over Israel was forty years; he reigned in Hebron seven years and in Jerusalem thirty-three years. 28 Then he died in a ripe old age, full of days, riches and honor; and his son Solomon reigned in his place.

Fear, Anxiety, and Pride

Our Pastor is preaching on the perils of pride and the blessings / promises of humility right now. At one point in his sermon this past week he talked about anxiety. To paraphrase, he said that fear was the product of a prideful heart. He quoted another man who said that the heart of pride is one that makes itself supreme, not our Almighty, Infinite God. The prideful heart sets itself and its own plans, desires, expectations as supremely important rather than God and His will, plans, and desires. So how does this relate to fear? Well it’s really simple… we all have desires and plans and expectations, but they're not always the same as God’s desires, plans, and expectations for us. When He sovereignly directs our day in a way that doesn’t coincide with the direction we wanted (planned or expected) it to go, our reaction reveals the status of our heart. Do I accept God’s direction for my life with humility like Jesus saying “but not my will Father, but Yours be done,” or do I react in fear (or anger or discontentment, etc.)? When I react in fear I am showing that my heart was really exalting itself over God’s supremacy and not submitting humbly to His plan for my day. As such, fear is really an outward expression of the heart that is filled with pride. The heart of fear (pride) says I don’t want that to happen… I’m afraid! But the heart of humility says, I desire for … (fill in the blank) to happen, but I know that God knows what is best and my ultimate desire is to submit to His Supremacy, even if that means that my momentary desires are not realized. The heart of humility will trust God to make the best decision and lead them down the best paths in their life, but the heart of pride will dig in their heels and react in fear, distrust, etc. ultimately fighting God’s direction.

I can tend to look at fear in my own heart and try to come up with a plan to fight it, but in reality I am missing the bigger problem. It’s like being in a war and arriving at the wrong battle field. The real issue isn’t my fear, but rather my pride. Will I submit my will to God and accept with humble faith that whatever He brings my way is the best thing for me and those whose lives are affected through me, or will I rebel against His will for me and engage is silent “protest” through my fear filled reaction. The better thing would be to confess to God my pride and seek to submit myself to His will, asking Him to help me trust in His promises of good for those “who love Him and are called according to His purposes.” I would profit more if I remembered the humility of Christ in the garden of Gethsemane expressing His desires to God but not making them an idol, rather seeking to do God’s will no matter how great the cost. (As such this reaction would honor God, too!) I would do well to imitate His faith which said “My food is to do the will of God.” Everything about Christ exuded humble trust in God and submission to His will.

To sum up and restate this in the most positive fashion that I can: The way to live a peace-filled, anxiety free, joyful life is to be a humble person (or at best this side of heaven: a person seeking to be humble). Living in humility or in the state of humbling ourselves under God’s mighty hand is the only way to experience freedom and joy beyond our comprehension, even in the midst of trials and unsettling events because our focus isn’t on our own plans or our own supremacy but rather on God who is both Almighty and All-powerful… and frankly amazing! We will be astounded as we see the beauty of His plan if we accept it humbly and without fear.

When The Joy is Gone

Depression is not something I would say that I struggle with, but to my surprise and dismay I have found myself fighting this battle all too many times. Trials, physical pain, stress, sin, and yes, hormones, can put any of us on this path. Like a thief in the night, there have been times when utter darkness and pure misery have attacked my soul, when the desire to quit and stop trying are a real temptation, and when I begin to question: Why God feels so far away? And why do I feel so alone?

You should be laughing by now “four little boys…and you feel alone, that’s nuts!” And it is nuts and a real tragedy, for when one lives by sight and not by faith - it robs you of joy and self pity becomes your best friend. I wish I could tell you that I have fought this fight with grace and faith, one on each hand, but all too often I’ve given into the struggle and have found a pit of immense sorrow. What’s worse is that what I needed the most was first pushed aside - God's Word. You literately rely on others reminding you of that Truth. And of others to pray with you, because you’re so far you can’t even see it.

By His grace I have found that faith and joy are not simply a feeling but are a CHOICE.

In the book of Philippians, Paul writes from jail calling them to “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!” (Phil 4:4). Sometimes our circumstances are nothing but depressing and it’s quite easy to plead discouragement or despair. Paul didn’t let his circumstances dictate his heart attitude. His utter dependence on God produced the faith and joy he was able to practice when suffering persecution.

In Charles Spurgeon bio The Great Orator, he says this:

We need clouds and darkness to exercise our faith; to cut off self-dependence, and make us put more faith in Christ, and less in evidence, less in experience, less in frames and feelings.

As women, our sight and feelings can make us or break us at times. We look for the person or the feeling that can comfort us. Well, in my search for that feeling I found Jesus. "The Word..." (John 1:1)literally became flesh and when I look to Jesus, everything He said and did is personal and full of emotions—He understands our state, BUT we must keep looking to Jesus to know what to do with that feeling or that situation. He trusted the Father and humbly submitted to His will.

So now I look at my “dark” days differently—I know that they are as needed as the up-beat days that are full of joy. They are opportunities to exercise my need and utter dependence on Christ.

Having A Fiesta Heart!

My neighbors recently had a “fiesta.” I am not sure what they were celebrating, but they really went all out for this party. They started getting their yard prepared and setting up at least a full day in advance. What fun it was to watch all the preparation. They seemed to be enjoying themselves immensely! They rented a gigantic bouncy “house” for the children. (This thing was 1 ½ stories high!) They strung up tarps in the trees to shade their backyard. They set out long lines of tables with decorations. They blew up balloons. They had a big piñata. They had lively music playing starting mid-morning and the party didn’t even start until early evening! Then when the party started, everyone seemed to be having a great time! Family and friends gathered together, their children playing and laughing, and all of them eating some fantastic smelling food!

As I watched and listened to the music and the way they were relating to each other, I couldn’t help but think of the parable in Luke 14 and Matthew 22 about the King who threw a wedding party. He sent out the invitations after all of the preparations for the joyous occasion were finished, but none of the original recipients wanted to come and celebrate with the King. It seems that they were all too busy with the everyday “stuff.” So instead He sent out His messengers to all the poor and needy and all the travelers on the road and many came to His celebration. How sad that the original recipients were so caught up in their own plans that they missed the great celebration the King had for them! How wonderful for the poor and needy and the travelers, who had nothing “of this world” to captivate them and were able to joyfully respond to the invitation!

I am so, SO glad that God “sent out” His messengers to me! I am so glad that He would invite me to His “marriage supper!” I imagine how it will be when we are with Jesus in glory, either in heaven or on the new earth. I know some people picture Heaven as some solemn place where everyone is too holy to smile, or where we stand around singing “Holy, Holy, Holy” all day; but I picture it as a place of real soul-bursting joy and celebration. How can it be anything less, when we are covered in the righteousness of Christ (our bride clothes!), we are free from sin, and we are in the presence of the most happy and complete person of all: God! I picture us celebrating with the Lord and the brethren from throughout the ages! Talking with Jesus, and Paul and Elijah, etc. Laughing with Peter… (people as boneheaded as he and I are sure to get along and have lots to laugh about!)

I have to say that my neighbor’s “fiesta” really encouraged me and added to my anticipation of the good which the Lord has for us with Him. It also reminded me to not set my heart on the things of this life which can so easily captivate us and distract us from the future hope and inheritance that we have awaiting us with our Lord! I know that someday we will be with Jesus, celebrating and enjoying His presence as well as fellowshipping with other believers, worshiping and filled with everlasting joy! What wondrous things we have to look forward to! Lord, help me to keep my heart and my eyes focused on You. Keep me looking up, not sideways!